This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen

Description

When it comes to relationships, Remy doesn't mess around.  After all, she's learned all there is to know from her mother, who's currently working on husband number five.  But there's something about Dexter that seems to defy all of Remy's rules.  He certainly doesn't seem like Mr. Right.  For some reason, however, Remy just can't seem to shake him.  Could it be that Remy's starting to understand what those love songs are all about?  From acclaimed author Sarah Dessen, this is a captivating novel about a tough-as-nails girl and the unexpectedly charming boy who's determined to soften her up.

Editorial Review

“I had no illusions about love… It came, it went, it left casualties or it didn't. People weren't meant to be together forever, regardless of what the songs say.” Remy doesn't believe in love. And why should she? Her romance novelist mother is working on her fifth marriage, and her father, a '70s hippie singer, left her with only a one-hit wonder song to remember him by. Every time Remy hears “This Lullaby,” it feels like “a bruise that never quite healed right.” “Wherever you may go / I will let you down / But this lullaby plays on…” Never without a boyfriend, Remy is a compulsive dater, but before a guy can go all “Ken” on her (as in “ultra boyfriend behavior”) she cuts him off, without ever getting close or getting hurt. That's why she's stunned when klutzy, quirky, alterna-band boy Dexter inserts himself into her life and refuses to leave. Remy's been accepted to Stanford, and she plans on having her usual summer fling before tying up the loose ends of her pre-college life and heading for the coast. Except Dexter's not following Remy's tried-and-true rules of break-up protocol. And for the first time, Remy's questioning whether or not she wants him to.

Author Sarah Dessen's ability to write novels that are both crowd pleasers and literary masterpieces of YA fiction is showcased beautifully in This Lullaby. Subtle yet completely absorbing, Lullaby is peopled with breathtakingly believable, three-dimensional characters, the very best of which is the bitter, broken Remy herself. An original love story about learning to love yourself first. (Ages 12 and older) –Jennifer Hubert